


two and a half months

by snuperlove



Category: iKON (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Summer Camp, Camp, Camp Counselor AU, Capture the Flag, Double B, Drama, Eventual Smut, M/M, Slow Burn, Summer Romance, That no one asked for!, im bored as hell and heres this, im just excited to write, like this idea came to me and im laid up in bed because of my mouth surgery so, maybe there'll be a smut chapter later on, romantic campfires
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-15
Updated: 2018-02-22
Packaged: 2019-03-16 12:05:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13635957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snuperlove/pseuds/snuperlove
Summary: jiwon has been a counselor for the boy's shark cabin at camp lakewood since he was 17. not only is it a great summer job, but he also gets to spend two and a half months hanging out with his childhood best friends and getting drunk in the woods on the off weeks. and for the better part of his summer break every year, he feels totally relaxed and in his element. the only exception is when hanbin is riding his ass about losing at capture the flag, and jinhwan isn't telling him everything, and suddenly jiwon is playing catch-up for a year away from them. and always, the summer moves on.a story in past and present.





	1. the curtains begin to open on our summer

**Author's Note:**

> hey guys! this is my first fic in a while so please do comment (but be gentle) !! also, im gonna try to up my summary game for each chapter so definitely look out for that. since this is a wip, you guys are free to guess/suggest where u think/want it to go next! again, please leave me comments i really live on those, and definitely give a kudos if you like it! you can always keep up with updates by checking my blog, @snuperlove on tumblr, under my tag /updates or /2.5months! shoot me a message or give me a follow there as well if u like my content
> 
> ahh, also sorry for the lack of vocal line in this chapter, they'll get more development later on, i just wanted to center on double b for these opening scenes

####  **june 3rd, 2015**

jiwon hopped up onto the thick oak steps of the mess hall. even as families were still arriving, it was clearly not too busy of a season for the boys cabin counselors. immediately inside, jinhwan was sitting on top of a table holding contraband right out in the open and looking smug about it.

“should you, like, have that out right now?” he settled himself onto the top of the table beside him. jinhwan didn’t even look up from his text.

“i’m texting junhwe, so technically it’s part of my job to have my phone out right now.”

“sure it is. while you’re at it, you should hit me up with some of that tequila that i most definitely saw in your bag.” the other boy just looked bored. jinhwan’s practiced disinterest was hard to grapple with, despite jiwon’s eight plus years of working at it.

“will do.” jiwon held out his fist and jinhwan fist bumped him, without even looking to see where his hand was.

“any of the others here yet? i thought i saw chanwoo getting smothered alive by his mom,” jiwon pulled his knees up to his chest as he said it. jinhwan finally turned off his phone and leaned back on his elbows so he could better survey the room.

“junhwe will be here in 10. i have no idea about anyone else though. i think binnie might be here.” at the mention of their childish nickname for hanbin, jiwon couldn’t help but cackle. it was well known that anyone who called hanbin by anything that could be misconstrued as cute was probably not sticking around a second summer. except for jiwon and jinhwan, who had special privileges when it came to teasing.

“i’ll go check out the hawks’ table then. maybe he’s playing nice with families right now.” jinhwan chewed his lip for a second and then pulled his phone back out.

“eh, probably. i’m gonna call junhwe while he’s driving to see if he picks up so i can yell at him about talking on the phone while driving.” jiwon nodded and unfolded himself again, taking his time to examine each cabin’s booth for their new recruits. the younger tables were all soft animals, hamsters and bluebirds that kids had drawn on their paper banner. but as he worked his way back to the tables with the teenagers, the animals grew sharper and more crudely drawn. hanbin’s cabin was next door to jiwon’s, so dead last in the line up. 

sure enough, hanbin was quietly and respectfully greeting the parents of his campers. he was somehow always the first to arrive at the camp, and the last to leave. jiwon ambled up to the booth but waited until the parents had left to greet him. 

“so.” he said, not even indulging in a hello. hanbin’s face grew into a wide grin and he pulled jiwon into a headlock to ruffle his hair. despite being almost 2 years his senior, hanbin treated jiwon like a little brother. to some it appeared disrespectful, but somehow in the atmosphere of camp lakewood, it didn’t really seem that bad. the cold morning fog and warm afternoons had softened everyone’s opinions of everybody else. 

“so! kim jiwon! i cannot believe you didn’t say hi to me before you went to put your stuff away!” in all fairness, jiwon hadn’t known hanbin had seen him arrive yet. 

“i’m sorry! next time, i will be here promptly at 7:30, just like the schedule says, to say hello to you, binnie, because you are my top priority.” hanbin’s smile maintained its million watt brightness as he hugged jiwon one more time. the campers lingering around their booths looked less than impressed by their loud, affectionate display, but jiwon had no shame. hanbin had been his best friend since they were 14, there was no point in sparing the theatrics with him. 

“that’s all i ask, that you come see me before anyone else! oh my god, how was spring semester? i meant to text you but my head was so far up my lit. professor's ass to pass that final that i completely blanked on it,” hanbin said, tilting his head to the side like a dog, inquiring. 

“it was a trainwreck. i literally didn’t sleep for three days because i was afraid if i went to sleep, i’d accidentally sleep through one of my finals.” they grimaced in unison, reliving the last few weeks of the school year. 

“as soon as i turned in my last project i was packing my stuff to come up here,” hanbin gestured to the roughly hewn log cabin of the mess hall, and the chaos taking place inside it. jiwon nodded knowingly. there was definitely something distinctly magical about being out on the grounds of the camp, exploring the surrounding woods. before jiwon could reply, there was shout from across the room.

turning their heads to look, they caught an eyeful of goo junhwe crashing into the hall, holding all three of his backpacks and looking out of breath. jinhwan leapt off the table and ushered him out the door. hanbin laughed and jiwon covered his mouth so no one would see him smirking. but as the moment began to pass, the excitement of the greetings gone, jiwon felt a nervousness creep into their space. hanbin pulled away just a bit, almost imperceptibly.

“i should uh, get back to socializing. gotta give the camp a good appearance, you know?” jiwon wanted to interject with an excuse for them to keep talking, but hanbin’s face was as tense as he felt. he just nodded and took a step back, physically adding space between them.

“yeah...yeah, that’s probably good. i should go, like, meet my campers and stuff. see you at dinner?” 

“yeah. i’ll see you then.”

  
  


jinhwan leapt off the table and tackled junhwe in a split second. before anyone could blink, he was picking up junhwe’s extra bags and ushering him onto the foot path towards the cabins. 

“thank god you’re here, i thought i was going to die of boredom.” junhwe just shook off jinhwan’s hand on his elbow, and laughed. they headed into the cool shade beneath the tree canopy. junhwe hoisted his messenger bag higher on his hip.

“how can you be bored? the summer’s barely started,” the younger teased, affectionately. jinhwan’s face soured like he’d tasted something bitter.

“yeah but...i’m glad you got here safely,” jinhwan stopped walking and junhwe slowed beside him. he leaned up on his tiptoes and pecked junhwe on the lips. as soon as he pulled away, he looked around the path quickly to make sure no one had seen it happen. junhwe just laughed and pulled him in for another kiss. jinhwan hurriedly broke away. “let’s go put your stuff away before opening ceremonies.” he dragged him down the path and further into the weaving maze of cabins.

“there’s no rush. they don’t start until noon, so we can take our time,” junhwe said. as they progressed through the woods, the cabins got bigger and began to be decorated in graffiti. the cabins for older teens never lived through the summer without a few scars. they traced the path down a ways until they stopped at a half-circle of cabins, with small sign posts outside each one. jinhwan held open the door of one on the outer edge and he nudged it closed with his foot after they entered. junhwe dropped his bags dramatically onto the bunk in the back, the counselor’s quarters that were secluded by a piece of plywood wall.

he busied himself putting away his clothes and supplies, setting out his phone and a beaten up portable speaker. it was a special tradition of his, to always start the day by blasting music so loudly that it could be heard even by hanbin and chanwoo at the back of the cluster of cabins.

jinhwan perched on the edge of the dusty, moth eaten mattress pad on his bunk and watched quietly as junhwe unpacked. he fidgeted with his lanyard in his lap until junhwe sat down beside him. he leaned into his side and put his head on junhwe’s shoulder. the still air was calming on his nerves. he turned his face into the curve of his neck.

“i really missed you,” jinhwan mumbled into junhwe’s exposed skin. 

“don’t be so sappy, jinan. it’s not like i died or something.” 

“we need to talk about last year.” 

“not right now, though. we still have an hour,” junhwe turned to kiss jinhwan just below the eye. “i haven’t seen you all spring..” he murmured and trailed his lips over the pulse points in jinwhan’s neck, and down to his collarbone. jinhwan let out a thin, airy sigh and melted back into his side.

“mm...i hate you, goo junhwe,” he said, with a smile. 

  
  


####  **august 5th, 2014**

 

hanbin bounced on his toes excitedly, clutching his new cabin shirt, a green that stood out eye-burning and bright from the trees and brush behind him. 

“jiwon, come on out! i want to see your team shirt! god, i can’t wait to beat you guys again this year. we’re gonna kick your fucking ass, dude,” hanbin grinned, hyping himself up. he could hear jiwon grumbling from the other room, probably protesting the deep pink shirt his cabin had made for him.

the door to the shark’s cabin flew open with a sick creak, and jiwon poked his head out. 

“hanbin, this is the worst thing i’ve ever been forced to wear,” his expression was almost a grimace as he said it. hanbin just kept laughing and stepped up and into the small bunk-room.

“you look….great,” he said, stifling a laugh. jiwon’s shirt was two sizes too big, and a nice matronly color of pink. it went down to his knees and revealed the rips in the thighs of his jeans. he ran a hand through his hair and pouted.

“thanks.” 

  
  


jinhwan hugged his knees to his chest and let his head rest on the tree bark behind him. he watched as junhwe and yunhyeong showed a group of campers how to unlock the boat shed and where to find the right size life jackets. the air that blew across the lake was still achingly hot, but made more manageable with the promise of afternoon swimming. 

donghyuk sighed loudly and sank onto the ground behind him. jinhwan didn’t look up until he sighed for a second time.

“what?” it came out accusatory.

“nothing,” donghyuk replied breezily. “i just can’t believe we only have one more week. i don’t want to wait a whole year to come back.”


	2. to see or not to see

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> donghyuk is struggling; jinhwan fears being found out; jiwon is trying to stay afloat
> 
> exposition.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hooo boy whats up you guys! im sorry for the delay in posting-- also, this chapter is totally unbeta'd so ahhhh...there might be typos/bad flow throughout. also, exposition! so much! exposition! we get our glimpses of vocal line here as well. also, a short peek at chanwoo, but he's getting more important later on. i hope you guys like it! definitely comment what you thought, i really am open and excited to be writing for yall. lmk what you think!

####  **june 3rd, 2015**

 

hanbin dutifully lead his campers through the chaos in the mess hall to their table in the center of the room. he made sure everyone was seated and had their water glasses and their utensils before he left to find copies of  the program for the opening ceremonies. 

even through the throngs of staff and campers, he could see the top of jinhwan’s head, hovering at the front of the makeshift stage and podium. hanbin pushed his way through the buzzing crowd to the front, nudging jinhwan with his shoulder. his older friend grinned and pushed a stack of folded papers into his hands.

“here. this should be enough for your campers and you,” he gave a slight grin. hanbin’s face broke into a matching smile. 

“do you not have a cabin to watch?” hanbin laughed.

“what, am i that obvious?” jinhwan paused to hand another stack of flyers to counselors as they arrived. the hall was growing more and more crowded as cabins arrived and were seated for lunch.

“what can i say, you looked too relaxed.”

“this year, i’m just lifeguarding and helping out, more of an admin position.” before he could elaborate further, yunhyeong materialized behind him and raised a hand in greeting. hanbin’s eyes flicked over to him, and jinhwan traced his gaze and spun around, smacking right into him. “ucking christ, yunhyeong, oh my god.” yunhyeong laughed at jinhwan’s disgruntled expression.

“i forgot to come say hi earlier, so i saw you and thought i’d grab my programs. i didn’t meant to scare the shit out of you though, that was just bonus.” jinhwan’s face remained sour, but his eyes were smiling. hanbin wrapped an arm around yunhyeong and pulled him into an awkward, one sided hug. 

“dude, i’m so glad to see you. i forgot i’m not allowed in the kitchen and i almost burned the place down trying to make eggs,” hanbin grimaced. yunhyeong laughed brightly.

“how did your roommates feel about that?” 

“let’s just say that jinwoo threatened to kick me out for trying to serve him burned eggs at 3 am.”

“3 am? you’ve sunk so low. don’t worry, i’ll write down a step-by-step for you to take home. i’m sure they’ll appreciate it.”

“maybe it’s a lost cause,” jinhwan piped up. hanbin shot him a dirty look and a pout, but didn’t respond. before yunhyeong could keep teasing, they were interrupted by another counselor climbing up to the mic stand and giving an announcement.

“hey, everybody, please take your seats. we’re gonna get started in just a minute now,” mino bowed slightly and then stepped off the podium to take a seat with his cabin.

“i’m gonna go sit down, but let’s talk after yeah?”

 

donghyuk slid into the seat next to yunhyeong, shushing his campers in preparation for the ceremonies to start. yunhyeong smiled and scooted over so they could share the end of the table’s bench seat.

“what’s up?” he whispered, trying not to set a bad example. 

“not much. my cabin is way too excited, i don’t know how i’ll keep track of them all.” yunhyeong motioned to the group of seven, chattering away about their summer plans. donghyuk nodded in agreement.

“no, i totally get it. i’m tired already,” he offered a wry grin.

“well, i brought some beer. if you want, we can hang out when they go to their camp-out tomorrow? i’m not a chaperone so i was just going to hang out with junhwe in his cabin. if you aren’t busy, you should come. it’ll be super lowkey,” yunhyeong looked hopeful that he would say yes. and unfortunately, donghyuk could not say no, not to his best friend, not to his best friend who looked at him like that.

“sure. yeah, i’ll be there! i have so much to tell you about.”

“you’re telling me! i think hanbin’s drama with jiwon is about to get good,” yunhyeong whispered conspiratorially.

“i thought they were over it?”

“well clearly not. i heard from jinhwan that jiwon is pretending it didn’t happen.”

“no way! i have to see this for myself.”

“i’m sure you will, they are  _ so  _ obvious,” yunhyeong laughed out loud before donghyuk shushed him again. they lapsed into silence, but donghyuk had trouble concealing his laughter. it struck him then, how much he’d missed having his best friend around over the winter. no one made him laugh like yunhyeong did, and rarely did they manage to seem so smug over their procurement of gossip, no, there really was no one like yunhyeong.

 

jiwon cracked jokes and tried to ease the nerves of his campers as they buzzed about their first hour at camp, walking to their afternoon activities from the mess hall. 

as they dispersed to go settle in, jiwon dropped off his campers at the stables. for the first afternoon, his cabin along with hanbin’s, had a block with the horses. he didn’t doubt that jinhwan had something to do with their newfound few hours of peace. 

“hey!” his older friend waved from the main path, holding a clipboard to his chest, pen tucked behind his ear, hair in a short ponytail and out of his face. 

“hey! what’s up? where’re your campers?” jiwon asked, jogging the short distance to join up with him.

“don’t have any. i’m actually waiting on hanbin to finish up dropping off his cabin right now,” jinhwan lifted his hand up and squinted, trying to shield his eyes from the sun.

“oh. uh, cool. i’ll catch you later, then,” jiwon decided to make a break for it before hanbin arrived and things could get awkward.

“hey, wait, why? i haven’t seen you since spring break, don’t just run off on me.” 

“oh, i just didn’t want to intrude, if you were waiting for hanbin,” jiwon backtracked.

“you aren’t. jiwon, get it together.”

“i have it together!”

“sure,” jinhwan drawled. “you just avoid me for sport, because you hate me so much.” jiwon laughed and he felt himself relax into the summer breeze and the smell of sweetgrass. 

“that’s exactly it, how did you know?” jiwon said giggling, letting jinhwan laugh and hit him with the side of his clipboard. 

“god, you’re a bitch.”

“thanks,” jiwon conceded, letting his feet take him up to the edge of the fence around the pasture. jinhwan joined him, and they leaned against it in silence for a moment. in the distance campers were learning the layout of the stables from mino and seunghoon. the sun was lowering from its peak and the air was just warm enough. they stayed like that for an indeterminate amount of time, only being tempted to move when they heard the crunch of gravel behind them. jiwon took in a lungful of clean, mountain air.

“hey guys. sorry, i got distracted talking to seunghoon about school.” hanbin approached, hands in his pockets and shoulders shrugged.

“no problem,’ jinhwan muttered, turning on his heel to wander further into the woods.”god, all this fresh air is making me crave a cigarette.”

“jinani, you really shouldn’t do that. especially around the campers. also, cancer? have you thought about cancer lately?” hanbin prodded, and jiwon nodded seriously, holding back a grin. when hanbin wanted, he could be very persuasive. the youngest slipped an arm around jinhwan’s shoulders, which pushed the neckline of his shirt down just a bit, revealing a small, purple bruise.

“is that a fucking hickey?” jiwon interrupted hanbin’s chastising speech. “jinan have you been getting busy and not telling me?” his questions made jinhwan turn a brilliant shade of pink and he pushed hanbin off so he could adjust his clothes to hide it again.

“i don’t know what you’re talking about.” hanbin’s eyes grew wide as his friend tried to play it cool.

“who is she? is it someone here? oh my god, was it jisoo?” jiwon offered up the first female counselor he could think of. it wasn’t uncommon for counselors to hook up, but jinhwan wasn’t normally about that sort of thing. 

“no one you know. is it really that big of a deal? it was just a one night stand. i didn’t even know her,” jinhwan rattled off excuses defensively, stepping back from the situation. jiwon could almost literally see his guard go up as they talked.

“i’m so proud, you go get ‘em man. our jinan, all grown up,” jiwon mimed wiping a tear from his eye. jinhwan stayed silent. he looked angry, but jiwon didn’t know what to say. hanbin smiled softly, in his quiet-but-comforting way, and grabbed jinhwan’s arm.

“i think jiwon is trying to...dare i say it… be nice,” he joked. still, it didn’t seem to make jinhwan less detached. the air was tense.

“i’m going to go smoke. you’re both going to give me a migraine,” he quietly excused himself from the conversation and slipped away, down the path that lead deeper into the woods. after he left, jiwon looked at hanbin and shrugged.

“did he seem off to you?”

“oh definitely.”

“was it something we did?”

“oh...definitely.”

 

 

####  **july 31st, 2014**

donghyuk pulled himself up out of the water with his arms, gripping tightly to the metal ladder hanging off the dock. yunhyeong leaned over the edge and offered him a hand up, grunting as he pulled them both over the ladder and back onto the warm wood slats. donghyuk was panting, and grinning ear to ear.

“that was great.” 

“i told you, the water  _ was  _ warm,” yunhyeong laughed and looped their bare arms together, causing donghyuk to blush. “let’s go dry off. my campers are done at three, so i need to get back to the stables.”

“are you sure you can’t stay?” donghyuk was starting to feel cold from the breeze, so he shrugged his shirt back on, even though it was still damp.

“yeah. but i’ll see you at dinner, right?”

“right.” donghyuk couldn’t place why he felt like such an asshole for asking yunhyeong to stay. they weren’t married, and it wasn’t like he could have anyway. but still, watching him grab his towel and dash off into the main campus, he felt like following.

 

jinhwan finished tying his cabin banner to the front post of their allotted field space. the camp summer olympics entailed a certain amount of personal cabin pride, and he’d be damned if he didn’t try to look passionate about it. he pushed his direly-in-need-of-a-haircut bangs off his forehead, already sweaty from being outside during set-up. surveying his work, he made the executive decision to go grab the pitcher of water he’d left with junhwe for his campers.

junhwe’s cabin had set up across the field, underneath a comfortable swath of shade. as jinhwan wandered over, he noticed junhwe was working on the outer portion of their canopy, trying to fix it. jinhwan swallowed thickly and averted his eyes from his friend’s muscular shoulders. 

“hey! i need my water back,” he cupped two hands around his mouth and shouted, causing junhwe to turn around and smile. when his eyebrows knit together and he laughed, loud enough to be heard from a distance, jinhwan felt his heartbeat speed up.

“one second!” junhwe secured the tie on the canopy and hopped down, handing one of his campers the screwdriver. he rummaged around in their cooler for the pitcher and upon realizing it was covered in condensation, dried it with his shirt. jinhwan took it gratefully and looked up to thank him. 

he hadn’t realized how close they were standing, or that junhwe was covered in sweat, or that he was looking at him so intensely. 

“sorry for accidentally stealing your water.”

“that’s fine. you can pay me back by coming to the bonfire on saturday.”

“it’s a date.”

 

chanwoo really, really liked minding his own business. sure, there was drama sometimes between his friends, but it was never involving him. all he wanted was to hang out with jiwon and junhwe, have fun with his campers, and go to the end-of-summer bonfire. really.

but for some reason, it was like he just wasn’t destined to live that life. because even though the summer breeze was warm and his evening walk was calming and he was thinking about dinner, he had made a wrong turn somewhere and ended up in an unfamiliar place.

and now...well.

jinhwan had his hair all tied up in a ponytail, and he was standing on his tiptoes, with his back to chanwoo. and he was kissing junhwe, in a way that did not scream “this is PG rated.” and junhwe had his hand on the small of jinhwan’s back, and the other on his hip. and there was definitely tongue. 

and none of this chanwoo had a problem with except he was 900% sure that he wasn’t supposed to be seeing any of it. 


End file.
